For Jesse Barry, persistence has never been so profound an attribute to possess. Diagnosed with an exhaustive and complicated myriad of autoimmune syndromes, diseases, infections and afflictions, it’s been determined that all of this was triggered by Covid.

Every week for a year, Mary Ellen played the cover tunes everyone wanted to hear. She regularly left there with several hundred dollars in her pocket and for a young college student this was a heady experience. For the first time, she set her sights on becoming a full time, professional musician.